The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-05-09
OIL TRUSTS OPPOSITION.
What is Said in Wall Street of I'll
Southern Oil Company.

Southern Oil Company.
The location of site in Savannah by the
Southern Cotton Oil Company for one of its
chain of oil mills adds interest to the ru-
mors afioat that the company's affairs are
not in a very roseate conditions 1t is said
that some of the gentlemen whose Subscrip-
tions were obtained have drawn out. The
Wall Street Ne,Us has taken pains to
look into the matter, and it says that it
is scarcely to be wondered at that such is the
case, for there seems to be but little hope for
the stockholders in such a concern, when the
American Cotton Oil Trust, comprising 90
per cent. of the practical mill owners of the
South, controls the raw material as well as
the manufactured product. An opposition
to such corporation, the NetUs adds can
only prove futile, and it then goes on to saw
that this is not the only reason why capital
lists are disinclined to put up funds freely for
the new venture. The gentlemen who organ
lied the Southern Cotton Oil Company have
not gone about il III q way calculated to in
spire the confidence of investors The sales
of stock at 50c. on the dollar are not in them
selves reprehensible. 1t is usually the Gus
tom to let first Corners into a new enterprise
ut concessions. They have to be given soft
thing to induce them to go in at ALL Tt does
however, seem kind of odd for the officials
to be provided with lot of patents TO alb
serb the first income from the subscriptions
For instance, at one of the first meetings of
the original directors of the Southern Cot
ton Oil Company it was resolved that the
company should then purchase twelve pat
ents for different devices connected with the
manufacture of cotton OIL and of the twelve
six appear to be controlled by the directors
whose names appear at the board meeting
where the purchase was authorized.
( IL was n pretty lIaa also tn
range that the Treasurer's bond
should be for only $4,000, and that his
two brothers, also in the concern,
should stand as sureties5 1t was not a bad
idea, either, for these same gentlemen, after
buying enough of their own patents as
company, which they had previously held
as individuals, TO 60 ahead and provide for
the expenditure of future income from the
subscriptions of outsiders by awarding
themselves Sal 600 per annum in salaries
divided as follows:
Per Annum.
General Manager .... ....... ......... l2OOO
Assistant Manager and Engineer. ....... 10 900
Secretary and Treasurer. ............... 1900
Nor shortly afterward to make another
office at $1,000 per annum; but the neatest
stroke of diplomacy was in the execution of
the agreement which the stakeholder is re-
quired to sign, and which leaves the
shares which he is TO get as COM
pletcly the property of the trustees as the
money which be pays in for them, for the
term Of one year. He cannot sell, except at
price which they name, and through them.
The trustees, however can market the sub
scriber's stock at their own option. In other
words, the stockholders money and his
shares are alike at the disposal OF the trus-
tees. The trustees Of such company ought
TO prosper, whether the stockholders
do or notJ provided they can get
enough lambs 10 pay in their
money, and sign such agreements. The
president of the Southern Oil Company is
Henry G. Butcher, of whom Phil Armour is
reported to have said recently, when offered
5000 shares of the stock by him on the
ground floor:.
II will build fence so high that he can
not climb over, and so low that he cannot
crawl under it,